There's a shortcut to those favorites

If you still get into your favorite programs via the hand/eye
coordination game of StartProgramsWhatever, you might want to
consider a faster and easier way of doing it. Go ahead and use
StartPrograms to find the application's "launch" file; only this
time right-click it and choose "Send to Desktop (Create
Shortcut)."

A new icon will appear on your Desktop bearing the program's
name along with a "shortcut arrow" in its lower left corner.
Double-click the icon to launch the program.

If you do this with lots of programs, your Desktop can become
cluttered, making it difficult to find the one you want. This can
be fixed by putting the icons into a special folder, where they can
be listed alphabetically (or in other ways). Right-click your
Desktop, choose NewFolder, type in a name, and drag the icons into
it.

After opening the folder with a double-click, use the View menu
to list the icons by whatever arrangement you find most
helpful.

If you find that double-clicking the folder, followed by
double-clicking an icon, is too time-consuming, you might prefer
having the icons in the "Quick Launch" area of your Taskbar. Try
dragging an icon onto the left end of your Taskbar near the Start
button. If it doesn't stay there, right-click the Taskbar and
choose ToolbarsQuick Launch, and try again.

Do the same with your other frequently accessed icons, and you
will discover that three or four of them will be displayed near
your Start button. The others will be out of view, but can be seen
by clicking the "" symbol, at the right of the icons on
display.

The advantages to having your favorite shortcuts here is that
they can be launched with a single-click, and that the "Quick
Launch" area is always accessible, no matter how many open files
may be hiding your Desktop folders.

Although there is no View menu to help rearrange the icons, they
can be moved manually to any position you prefer. You will also
notice that an icon dragged onto your Taskbar is "copied" there,
leaving the original in place, which can then be deleted without
affecting the Quick Launch icons.

Because I normally have many odd tasks on my Desktop at once
(editing a photo, calculating a spreadsheet, writing this column,
etc.) I find it helpful to see my Desktop displayed as a "regular
yellow folder" with all its icons displayed accordingly. Believe it
or not, your "Desktop" really is a folder, and can be displayed as
such by doing the following:

Go to StartSearchFiles & Folders and type DESKTOP. Be sure
that System, Hidden, and Sub-folders are checked under "More
Advanced Options." If you find more than one "Desktop" folder
double-click each to see which holds your Desktop icons.

Right-click it and choose "Send to Desktop." It may seem odd to
have a Desktop Shortcut on your Desktop, but the folder's contents
can be displayed like those of other folders, including WinXP's
"Thumbnail" views of your image files.

More tips can be found at www. pcdon. com and calls are welcome
at (949) 646-8615.